About
LABUAN IBFC
The Midshore International Business and Financial Centre in Asia Pacific
The International Advisory Panel
The International Advisory Panel (IAP), which was set up in 2004, is a consultative body that advises on the strategic direction of Labuan IBFC in relation to business and market developments. The Authority appoints members of the IAP. The members of the IAP include:
1. Dato’ Mohammed Azlan Hashim
Chairman of IAP
2. Mr Michael Troth
Managing Director and Region Head for Citi Trust in Asia Pacific
3. Mr Mark Lea
Partner, Lea & White; Managing Director, Lea & White International Advisers Limited
4. Datuk Wira Jalilah Baba
Group Chairman of PKT Logistics Group Sdn Bhd
5. Dato’ Mohammad Faiz Azmi
Executive Chairman of PricewaterhouseCoopers Malaysia
6. Datuk Dr. Mohd Daud Bakar
Founder and Group Chairman, Amanie Advisors Sdn Bhd
7.
Mr Malcolm Cutts-Watson
Managing Director, Cutts-Watson Consulting Limited
8. Ms Pushpa Rajadurai
Board Member of FIDE FORUM
9. Mr Chew Seng Kok
Chairman, ZICO Law Network
10. Mr Iain Johns
Group Head of Private Client Services, JTC, Jersey
1. Dato’ Mohammed Azlan Hashim
Chairman of IAP
Dato’ Mohammed Azlan Hashim is Chairman of D&O Green Technologies Berhad, SILK Holdings Berhad, Labuan IBFC Inc. Sdn Bhd and Deputy Chairman of IHH Healthcare Berhad. He is also a board member of SCOMI Group Berhad; and Khazanah Nasional Berhad and a member of Investment Panel for the Employees Provident Fund and the Government Retirement Fund Inc.
He has extensive experience in the corporate sector, including financial services and investment. Positions that he has held include that of Chief Executive of Bumiputra Merchant Bankers Berhad, Group Managing Director of Amanah Capital Malaysia Berhad and Executive Chairman of Bursa Malaysia Berhad Group.
Dato’ Azlan holds a Bachelor of Economics (Monash) and qualified as a chartered accountant (Australia). He is a Fellow Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants, Australia, Member of The Malaysian Institute of Accountants, Fellow Member of Malaysian Institute of Directors, Fellow Member of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators and Hon. Member of The Institute of Internal Auditors, Malaysia.
2. Mr Michael Troth
Managing Director and Region Head for Citi Trust in Asia Pacific
Mr Michael Troth is Region Head of Citi Trust in Asia Pacific, which includes the operations of Cititrust Singapore Limited. He is responsible for business strategy, sales, relationship management and the day-to-day operations.
Prior to joining Citi Private Bank, he spent 13 years with Jardine Matheson Trust Corporation, of which the last 10 years were in Asia where he was Managing Director of its Asian Trust Business.
Prior to joining Citi Private Bank, he spent 13 years with Jardine Matheson Trust Corporation, of which the last 10 years were in Asia where he was Managing Director of its Asian Trust Business.
Mr Troth obtained his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology. He is an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Bankers and holds a Diploma in Trust and Estate Practice. He is also a member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers and the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. He is based in Singapore.
3. Mr Mark Lea
Partner, Lea & White; Managing Director, Lea & White International Advisers Limited
Mr Mark Lea is currently Partner at Lea & White, and Managing Director at Lea & White International Advisers Limited. He is also a Member of the Inland Revenue Board of Review of Hong Kong, and served on the executive committees of the Hong Kong Trustees Association and the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (Hong Kong Branch). He has since been a member of their Joint Law Reform Committee.
Mr Lea’s primary areas of expertise include international estate planning and structure and international comparative taxation. He advised the Government of Singapore with regard to the Trustees Act of Singapore, originated the proposals for changes to the Trust Law of Hong Kong, and advised the Malaysian Government on changes to the laws of Labuan, including Trust Law, Foundations Law and Limited Partnership Law. Mr Lea is also advising the Government of Samoa on their new Trust Law and Foundations Law and on changes to other relevant laws in consequence.
Mr Lea qualified as a solicitor in 1970 in London, before joining the Merchant Bank N.M. Rothschild & Sons Limited, where he worked closely with the Chairman Lord Victor Rothschild KCMG GC at a time when he was Head of the UK Government Think Tank. He became a Director of Rothschild’s Trust Companies and of its Guernsey Bank. Having been a partner and then Chairman in one of the UK’s most successful provincial law firms, Mr Lea moved permanently to Asia and was admitted to practice as a solicitor in Hong Kong in 1995. He has taught a course on international estate planning including the use of trusts and foundations, and has been Adjunct Professor of Law at the National University of Singapore for the last 10 years. Mr Lea was educated in England at Eton College, where he was President of the Eton Society.
Mr Lea’s primary areas of expertise include international estate planning and structure and international comparative taxation. He advised the Government of Singapore with regard to the Trustees Act of Singapore, originated the proposals for changes to the Trust Law of Hong Kong, and advised the Malaysian Government on changes to the laws of Labuan, including Trust Law, Foundations Law and Limited Partnership Law. Mr Lea is also advising the Government of Samoa on their new Trust Law and Foundations Law and on changes to other relevant laws in consequence.
Mr Lea qualified as a solicitor in 1970 in London, before joining the Merchant Bank N.M. Rothschild & Sons Limited, where he worked closely with the Chairman Lord Victor Rothschild KCMG GC at a time when he was Head of the UK Government Think Tank. He became a Director of Rothschild’s Trust Companies and of its Guernsey Bank. Having been a partner and then Chairman in one of the UK’s most successful provincial law firms, Mr Lea moved permanently to Asia and was admitted to practice as a solicitor in Hong Kong in 1995. He has taught a course on international estate planning including the use of trusts and foundations, and has been Adjunct Professor of Law at the National University of Singapore for the last 10 years. Mr Lea was educated in England at Eton College, where he was President of the Eton Society.
4. Datuk Wira Jalilah Baba
Group Chairman of PKT Logistics Group Sdn Bhd
Datuk Wira Jalilah Baba, an economics graduate, is an expert in handling investment-related matters pertaining to foreign direct investments; tax and customs; and the industry and government’s high impact incentive packages. She is a regular reference for economics and investment-related matters by the media and has acted as host for the Live Budget commentary session with TV3, RTM and Bernama. She is also known as an articulate speaker with excellent public relations communication skills and has been the lead speaker for Malaysia at various national and international conferences, including the Invest Malaysia Conference in New York, Abu Dhabi, Beijing and Hong Kong; and the New Zealand Business Conference in Auckland, New Zealand.
Datuk Wira Jalilah retired from the government service as the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA) in August 2011. She served MIDA for more than 30 years and was the chief negotiator in attracting and evaluating various high impact projects for Malaysia.
A Brand Laureate “Woman of the Year” Award recipient in January 2012, Datuk Wira Jalilah currently serves on the board and audit committee of a public listed company, QL Resources Berhad; and is Chairman of several private companies such as Crewstone International Sdn Bhd, PKT Logistics Group Sdn Bhd, Xadacorp Sdn Bhd and Mazda Logistics Sdn Bhd. She is also a Board Member of Education Malaysia Global Services.cience (Hons) in Mining Engineering from the Imperial College of Science and Technology, University of London.
A Brand Laureate “Woman of the Year” Award recipient in January 2012, Datuk Wira Jalilah currently serves on the board and audit committee of a public listed company, QL Resources Berhad; and is Chairman of several private companies such as Crewstone International Sdn Bhd, PKT Logistics Group Sdn Bhd, Xadacorp Sdn Bhd and Mazda Logistics Sdn Bhd. She is also a Board Member of Education Malaysia Global Services.cience (Hons) in Mining Engineering from the Imperial College of Science and Technology, University of London.
5. Dato’ Mohammad Faiz Azmi
Executive Chairman of PricewaterhouseCoopers Malaysia
Dato’ Mohammad Faiz Azmi is the Executive Chairman of PricewaterhouseCoopers Malaysia and was the leader of PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Global Islamic Finance Team practice until September 2012. He was also previously the Financial Services Leader for Malaysia.
Dato’ Mohammad Faiz has over 28 years’ experience in the audit and business advisory services of financial institutions both in the UK and Malaysia. In addition to financial services, he has also been involved in the audits of clients in the conglomerates, healthcare, power and construction sectors.
A subject matter expert on banking and Islamic finance topics, Dato’ Mohammad Faiz is often invited to speak at seminars and forums, both locally and abroad. He is currently an Adviser to the Federal Government on implementing international public sector accounting standards (IPSAS).
Dato’ Mohammad Faiz serves on the boards of several professional bodies. In 2009, he was appointed by the Minister of Finance II as Chairman of the Malaysian Accounting Standards Board, and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. He is also a Council Member of the Malaysian Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Dato’ Mohammad Faiz sits on the International Accounting Standards Board’s (IASB) Shariah-compliant Transactions Consultative Committee. In addition to being appointed by the Minister of Higher Education to the Hala Tuju 3 Committee, he also chairs the Companies Commission of Malaysia’s Extensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) forum.
Dato’ Mohammad Faiz serves on the boards of several professional bodies. In 2009, he was appointed by the Minister of Finance II as Chairman of the Malaysian Accounting Standards Board, and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. He is also a Council Member of the Malaysian Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Dato’ Mohammad Faiz sits on the International Accounting Standards Board’s (IASB) Shariah-compliant Transactions Consultative Committee. In addition to being appointed by the Minister of Higher Education to the Hala Tuju 3 Committee, he also chairs the Companies Commission of Malaysia’s Extensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) forum.
Dato’ Mohammad Faiz was educated in Malaysia and the UK, and read law at the University of Durham before being called to the English Bar.
6. Datuk Dr. Mohd Daud Bakar
Founder and Group Chairman, Amanie Advisors Sdn Bhd
Datuk Dr Mohd Daud Bakar is the Founder and Group Chairman of Amanie Advisors, a global boutique Shariah advisory firm with offices located in Kuala Lumpur, Dubai, Luxembourg, Cairo, Kazakhstan, Oman, Australia, South Korea, Dublin and Tunis. He is also the Founder and Chairman of Amanie Nexus Sdn Bhd (Kuala Lumpur). He is currently the Chairman of the Shariah Advisory Council of the Central Bank of Malaysia, the Shariah Advisory Council of the Securities Commission of Malaysia and the Shariah Supervisory Council of Labuan Financial Services Authority.
In addition, Datuk Dr Mohd Daud is also a member of the Shariah Board of Dow Jones Islamic Market Index (New York), The National Bank of Oman, Financial Guidance (USA), BNP Paribas (Bahrain), Morgan Stanley (Dubai), Bank of London and Middle East (London), Noor Islamic Bank (Dubai), Islamic Bank of Asia (Singapore) and other financial institutions both locally and abroad.
Currently, he is the Adjunct Professor (Islamic Finance) for the Asia Graduate School of Business of UNITAR International University and Adjunct Professor for the Islamic Business School of Universiti Utara Malaysia. Prior to this, he was the Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the International Islamic University Malaysia.
Datuk Dr Mohd Daud received his first degree in Shariah from the University of Kuwait, a Bachelor of Jurisprudence from the University of Malaya, and obtained his PhD from the University of St Andrews, UK.
As one of the most respected individuals in the Islamic finance industry, Datuk Dr Mohd Daud has published a number of articles in various academic journals and conferences both locally and abroad. In recognition of his many contributions in the Shariah field, in 2014 he was named recipient of the “Tokoh Perdana” award in conjunction with Malaysia’s Maulidur Rasul 1435 Hijrah/2014 (Prophet Muhammad’s birthday) celebration. The award, presented to him by the current Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia, is one of the highest awards recognising Malaysians for their outstanding contribution to society.
As one of the most respected individuals in the Islamic finance industry, Datuk Dr Mohd Daud has published a number of articles in various academic journals and conferences both locally and abroad. In recognition of his many contributions in the Shariah field, in 2014 he was named recipient of the “Tokoh Perdana” award in conjunction with Malaysia’s Maulidur Rasul 1435 Hijrah/2014 (Prophet Muhammad’s birthday) celebration. The award, presented to him by the current Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia, is one of the highest awards recognising Malaysians for their outstanding contribution to society.
7. Mr Malcolm Cutts-Watson
Managing Director, Cutts-Watson Consulting Limited
Malcolm is a seasoned insurance industry professional with broad experience of management of financial entities and the demands of major corporations built upon a foundation of insurance and risk management. A career that spans three decades and three of the leading captive insurance domiciles - Vermont, Bermuda and Guernsey, has given Malcom a broad perspective on the past and a sophisticated outlook on the future of the alternative risk industry.
He is currently the Managing Director and consultant of Cutts-Watson Consulting Limited, providing advice to a range of financial services stakeholders including shareholders, boards, managers, service providers, regulators and promotional agencies. He is also a Non-Executive Director of Virtus Management Limited.
He worked for Johnson & Higgins from 1982 to 1993 before joining the Willis captive practice in Guernsey in 1994. He retired as chairman of Willis’ international captive practice in 2014. He had won the coveted Outstanding Contribution by an Individual award at the UK Captive Services Awards in 2015.
Malcom is an advocate of higher standards of governance in the finance industry and applies this governance of risk to a broad range of financial service businesses. Exposure to all facets of financial services both in Guernsey and internationally. He is an approved person in many jurisdictions and has experience of many others. Experience includes Caribbean, Bermuda, USA, Europe, Africa, Gulf States, and Asia. He is a regular contributor to industry debate, both speaking at conferences and publishing editorial. He also sits on the judging panel of UK and European Captive Service awards and inductee to the Captive Review Hall of Fame 2016, which recognises the most influential individuals the captive industry has produced over the past 50 years.
8. Ms Pushpa Rajadurai
Board Member of FIDE FORUM
Ms Pushpa Rajadurai has held various Senior Management positions in the Ambank Group over a span of 27 years covering investment banking, corporate & institutional banking and commercial banking. Her last post was Managing Director of Wholesale Banking Ambank Group. She has also been a board member in 12 entities within the Ambank Group over the past 15 years, some of which have been Chairperson of the board. Notably, she was a board member of the then listed AmInvestment Bank Bhd, Chairperson of the board of Amfunds and AmIslamic Management Bhd and board member of the Manager of Listed Am Reits.
She has contributed to the banking industry and capital markets for the past 20 years in various industry forums and represented on steering committees/panels spearheaded by BNM, SC, Bursa, CCM, MASB and FSPB. She was the Alternate Chairman of the Malaysian Investment Banking Association and board member of the Asian Banking School Sdn Bhd. She had also actively participated in joint collaborations between the banking industry and regulators among countries in the ASEAN region to promote and further develop regional capital markets.
Ms Pushpa is a Fellow Member of The Chartered Associations of Certified Accountants United Kingdom and Chartered Accountant of the Malaysian Institute of Accountants.
9. Mr Chew Seng Kok
Chairman, ZICO Law Network
Mr Chew Seng Kok, Managing Director, is primarily responsible for the business development, overall strategy and management of our Group.
Seng Kok is also the Chairman of ZICO Law, a network of independent law firms in the ASEAN region which is associated with the Group. The network has offices in 17 cities throughout South East Asia including Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, Brunei and Philippines.
Seng Kok graduated with a LLB (Hons) in 1984 and obtained a LLM (1st Class) from Victoria University of Wellington, NZ in 1989. Seng Kok started practice in Malaysia in 1985, was with Chapman Tripp in Wellington and Baker & McKenzie, Singapore. In 1991, he joined Zaid Ibrahim & Co. where he rose up the ranks to become its managing partner in 2004. He assumed the role of regional managing partner of ZICOlaw in 2011. In November 2014, Seng Kok left his managing role in Zaid Ibrahim & Co. to take up a full time role as the Managing Director of ZICO and as the Chairman of the ZICO Law Network.
Seng Kok is very active in supporting the public and private sectors on promoting trade and investments in the ASEAN region. He is a Director of the ASEAN Business Club (ABC), an association of the chief executives of the region’s leading business enterprises. The ABC provides a forum for its members to network, collaborate and play an active role in the process of ASEAN economic integration. Seng Kok was given an award by the NZ government in August 2015 in recognition of his significant contribution in building strong ties between New Zealand and Malaysia and with ASEAN.
10. Mr Iain Johns
Group Head of Private Client Services, JTC, Jersey
Iain Johns is the Global Head of Private Clients of JTC. In this role he is responsible for the strategic development and performance of the company’s private client business line globally, as well as occupying a Director position on its Group Holdings Board.
Prior to joining JTC in 2012, Iain was Global Head of Private Clients for TMF Group (formerly Equity Trust) and a member of its Global Executive Committee. He was also Managing Director of the company’s Jersey office.
Named on Private Client Practitioner’s ’50 Most Influential’ list in 2012, 2015, 2016 and 2017 and included in the Citywealth Leaders List since 2011, Iain has extensive experience in dealing with the financial affairs of some of the world’s wealthiest families.
Iain holds an MBA from Deakin University, Australia, and a Bachelor of Business Degree in Accountancy. He also holds Certified Practising Accountant (CPA) status in Australia as well as being a Member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners.
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